Edward John Phillips (21 August 1933 – 9 January 2018) was an English professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
.
Biography
Phillips was born in
Gromford,
Suffolk
Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...
and started his football career at local club
Leiston
Leiston ( ) is an English town in the East Suffolk non-metropolitan district of Suffolk, near Saxmundham and Aldeburgh, about from the North Sea coast, north-east of Ipswich and north-east of London. The town had a population of 5,508 at the ...
before joining the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
.,
21 August 2013 After leaving the army he was recommended to
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
by a scout and attended a trial at the club. The club offered Phillips a contract, but he initially refused to sign as he was earning more money as a gardener in
Tunstall.
[ The club later offered to pay transport expenses and a total wage of £8 a week, after which he signed for the club.][ After making his debut against ]Watford
Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne.
Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...
in March 1954, Phillips spent the 1955–56 season on loan to Stowmarket
Stowmarket ( ) is a market town in Suffolk, England,OS Explorer map 211: Bury St.Edmunds and Stowmarket
Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton A2 edition. Publishing Date:2008. on the busy A14 road (Great Britain), A14 trunk ...
.[
Phillips went on to make over 250 appearances for Ipswich between 1953 and 1964, scoring over 150 goals and making him the third highest scorer in the club's history. He also holds the record for the most goals scored for the club in one season with 46 in the 1956–57 season,]Peter Lorimer
Peter Patrick Lorimer (14 December 1946 – 20 March 2021) was a Scottish professional footballer, best known for his time with Leeds United and Scotland during the late 1960s and early 1970s. An attacking midfielder and the club's youngest-ever ...
, Bobby Charlton
Sir Robert Charlton (born 11 October 1937) is an English former footballer who played either as a midfielder or a forward. Considered one of the greatest players of all time, he was a member of the England team that won the 1966 FIFA World ...
and Bobby Smith. In 1962, a report in the ''East Anglian Daily Times
The ''East Anglian Daily Times'' is a British local newspaper for Suffolk and Essex, based in Ipswich.
History
The newspaper began publication on 13 October 1874, incorporating the ''Ipswich Express'', which had been published since 13 August ...
'' said of Phillips: "It is an undisputed fact that he is the best kicker of a dead ball in the game."
After leaving Ipswich in 1964, Phillips played for Luton Town
Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...
, Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a professio ...
and Colchester United
Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...
. After leaving Colchester at the end of the 1965–66 season, he moved to Malta to become player/manager of Floriana
Floriana ( mt, Il-Furjana or ''Il-Floriana''), also known by its title Borgo Vilhena, is a fortified town in the South Eastern Region area of Malta, just outside the capital city Valletta. It has a population of 2,205 as of March 2014. Floriana i ...
, a club he had played against during Ipswich's 1962–63 European Cup campaign, scoring four goals in the two legs. during the 1966–67 season. Despite winning the Independence Cup and the Maltese FA Trophy
The FA Trophy, currently known as the IZIBET FA Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual football cup competition that takes place in Malta. The cup was founded in 1933; following a match between England and Italy, played in Rome in May 1933, ...
, his first season at the club was not regarded as a success and he left midway through the 1967–68 season. After returning to England, he played non-League football for Chelmsford City
Chelmsford City Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Chelmsford, Essex, England. Currently members of they play at the Melbourne Stadium.
History Chelmsford
Chelmsford Football Club was established in 1878 by members of ...
and Long Melford
Long Melford, colloquially and historically also referred to as Melford, is a large village and civil parish in the Babergh district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is on Suffolk's border with Essex, which is marked by the River Stour, ...
.
Away from football he also played for Suffolk County Cricket Club.[
Following his football career, Phillips worked for ]Pirelli
Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational tyre manufacturer based in Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, is the 6th-largest tyre manufacturer and is focused on the consumer production of tyre ...
Cables. He died on the morning of 9 January 2018 at the age of 84 after suffering from dementia.[Ipswich Town legend Ted Phillips dies]
East Anglian Daily Times, 9 January 2018
Honours
Ipswich Town
* Football League First Division
The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...
Winner (1): 1961–62
* Football League Second Division
The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...
Winner (1): 1960–61
* Football League Third Division South
The Third Division South of The Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to on ...
Winner (1): 1956–57
Individual
* Ipswich Town Hall of Fame: Inducted 2007
References
External links
Pride of Anglia profile of Ted Phillips
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Ted
1933 births
2018 deaths
People from Leiston
Leiston F.C. players
Ipswich Town F.C. players
Stowmarket Town F.C. players
Luton Town F.C. players
Leyton Orient F.C. players
Colchester United F.C. players
Floriana F.C. players
Floriana F.C. managers
Chelmsford City F.C. players
Long Melford F.C. players
Minor Counties cricketers
English Football League players
English expatriate football managers
English footballers
English football managers
Association football forwards
Deaths from dementia in England